Young Adult Book Reviews

Genre: Sports Fiction/Native American Fiction

Tre is a Native American living on a reservation in Minnesota with his mother and father who are still grieving the sudden loss of his big brother, Jaxon. Jaxon was an amazing basketball player and the loss of him resulted in the rez team once again not making it to the state tournament. Tre was crushed when the team lost and vowed to improve his game so he can make varsity for his sophomore year. His best friend, Wes, is convinced Tre has a future in basketball and has been making a documentary on his journey since he is an aspiring filmmaker. As he gets closer to the season he really believes that his summer workouts will pay off, he’ll make varsity, and they’ll take the team to the state tournament for the first time. Can he make the varsity team his brother would have been a starting senior on? Can the rez team get to the state tournament for the first time in history? Can he keep up with the insane expectations everyone has for him?

Fans of sports fiction will enjoy this title because there is a lot of great sports action, but the setting on the reservation is really different and interesting. There is starting to be more Native American fiction and this is a great one to show how life on the rez is not that different from life in any other place, but there are still many people who harbor stereotypes and prejudices toward Native Americans. The characters are well developed which helps the reader care about what happens to them and how this team truly affects the entire rez. The ending is exciting and satisfying. Recommended for fans of other sports fiction authors such as Carl Deuker.